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About Hermiston herald. (Hermiston, Or.) 1994-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 16, 2020)
NEWS WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 16, 2020 HERMISTONHERALD.COM • A9 Umatilla County approved for Phase 2 By ALEX CASTLE STAFF WRITER Umatilla County is back at Phase 2. According to Uma- tilla County Commissioner George Murdock, Gov. Kate Brown informed the county of its status in an unexpected phone call the morning of Friday, Sept. 11. “We knew that we were really in good shape and in the position for it to hap- pen, but we feared that per- haps with all the eyes on the incredible devastation that’s going on with the forest fi res that maybe it wouldn’t get addressed,” Murdock said. “But it did.” In Phase 2, indoor and outdoor recreation and entertainment venues, such as movie theaters and pools, are able to reopen, in addi- tion to restaurants and bars being permitted to stay open until 10 p.m. and large gath- erings being capped at 50 people. Brown and the Oregon Health Authority denied the county’s petition for Phase 2 the week prior to the announcement, citing three of six case metrics the county hadn’t met and a prevalence of COVID-19 cases above 100 cases per 100,000 people. Those met- rics were uptrends in hospi- talizations over the last 14 days, uptrends in positive test rate in the last week and an uptrend of more than 5% in new cases over the last week. While returning to Phase 2 after the state sent Uma- tilla County back to the base- line of reopening on July 31 was a necessary milestone to reach, the county is urging residents to remain diligent in protecting themselves and others from the virus. “Almost week to week we’re hearing more chat- ter of vaccines and different treatment methods they’re looking into,” Umatilla County Public Health direc- tor Joe Fiumara said. “That’s all promising stuff. But until we’ve got it, all we’ve got is the physical distancing and face coverings. That’s what we’ve got right now and it’s working.” A week after no new workplace outbreaks were reported in Umatilla or Mor- row counties, the Oregon Health Authority’s weekly report published Sept. 10 included a new work- place outbreak of fi ve cases reported at Ranch and Home in Hermiston. Guardian Angel Homes in Hermiston was also reported as having 18 cases of the virus and one death of a resident positive for COVID-19. Another Herm- iston assisted living facility, Sun Terrace, was readded to the active outbreak list with 10 cases and one death among its residents. The Oregon Health Authority report includes a list of workplaces with at least 30 employees that have had at least fi ve cases of COVID-19 linked to them, either through employees testing positive or confi rmed cases being traced back to those employees as the most probable source. Morrow County students Downed power lines get the blame for Umatilla fi re earn art contest honors By JADE MCDOWELL NEWS EDITOR HERMISTON HERALD Two Morrow County students were honored during a virtual recep- tion held earlier this week. Their artwork was selected among 643 entries submit- ted to a calendar art contest sponsored by Oregon Agri- culture in the Classroom Foundation. This year, artwork was submitted by K-6 students across the state in public, private, charter and home- school education systems featuring Oregon agricul- ture and natural resources. The entries received cel- ebrated a wide variety of Oregon’s 220 agricultural commodities, according to a news release. The two Morrow County winners attend lone Com- munity School and Hep- pner Elementary School. Isabelle Ogden, a fi fth- grader from lone Com- munity School, submitted artwork featuring sheep grazing in an open fi eld with luscious green grass, and can be viewed on the March page of the calendar. In describing her artwork, Ogden said in the news release, “I chose to draw sheep because when I did 4-H I had a sheep. Sheep provide food and fi ber in the state of Oregon.” Fourth-grade Heppner Elementary School stu- dent Kathryn “KC” Ander- son drew a chicken, which can be viewed on the Feb- ruary page of the calen- dar. Anderson stated in the release, “I chose to draw chickens because I like the detail on their feathers and they produce eggs and meat for Oregon.” She added, “We have nine free range chickens at my house. Some of the chickens are Golden Laced Wyandotte. I based my drawing off one of these and her name is Super Chicken.” The 13 students selected to be featured in the 2020- 21 calendar received a $50 award and certifi cate. The winning artwork is dis- played on the AITC web- site. Calendars are free to Oregon teachers, and can be ordered for just $4 on oregonaitc.org/shop. “The calendar contest is Contributed photos a great project for teachers and students to assign as a fun project during this time of distance learning,” said Jessica Jansen, AITC exec- utive director, in a press release. Serving Families with Care and Compassion for Over 70 Years. BURNS MORTUARY Above, Ione fi fth-grader Isabelle Ogden’s winning artwork shows sheep grazing in a fi eld At left, Kathryn “KC” Anderson, a Heppner fourth-grader, submitted a winning entry of a chicken for the Agriculture in the Classroom calendar art contest. Both pictures will appear in the AITC 2020-21 calendar. Umatilla Rural Fire Pro- tection determined that power lines knocked loose by high winds were the cause of the Monday, Sept. 7, fi re that caused evacua- tions on the south side of Umatilla. A news release from the district stated the power lines went down in the “general area of Scaplehorn Road,” which connects to the north side of Highway 730 across from the highway’s intersec- tion with Powerline Road to the south. The release stated that the fi rst fi re crew on scene, at about 5 p.m., found the Encore Wellness clinic near the road was “experiencing impending fl ames.” While the fi re was brought under control and Photo contributed by Angie Smith A grass fi re burns near Umatilla on Monday, Sept. 7, 2020. mutual aid crews were sent home in the early morning hours of Sept. 8, some cus- tomers of Umatilla Elec- tric Cooperative and Pacifi c Power in the area did not see their power restored until Sept. 9. PLA Y IT REME S M AND AFE WIT BER TO WEA H A L R YO ITTL UR M E SP ASK ACE ! y d a e r t e G t o pl ay! of Hermiston & Hermiston Crematory The fi re also knocked out internet to many house- holds, but on Sept. 9 Eastern Oregon Telecom reported on its Facebook page that most services were back online, or “at least partially restored.” ! h t n o m is h t g n i n e p O 685 W. 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